The Right to Work at Fourteen | Teen Ink

The Right to Work at Fourteen

May 4, 2018
By Anonymous

The legal working age in Louisiana is fifteen years old which restricts fourteen year olds from working. The working age should be changed due to the many benefits that will help teens themselves and their family. Starting to work at a young age helps give teens the opportunity to experience teamwork, gain responsibility at an early age, and many other aspects that could help someone later in their life and in their future career.

 

Getting a job early on in life will help teens mature faster and teach them how to use money responsibly. Allowing fourteen year olds to have jobs would help teens to realize that if they want to get what they want, they have to earn it instead of not doing anything and thinking they can get what they want just because they think they can. In order for teens to help support their families, learn about teamwork, and have the experience they need for future jobs, fourteen year olds should be allowed to hold jobs.


A reason fourteen year olds should be allowed to hold jobs is because some teenagers and their families could struggle with financial issues. Even though their parents may have jobs, that might not be enough to be able to afford groceries, a good education, and basic necessities they may need on their day-to-day life. Having a job at fourteen could help teens support their family and teach them about what is important to buy versus what is not. For example, instead of going to get ice cream after school, they could think about what is more important and buy dinner for their family instead. This could help them understand that money does not grow on trees and that there is a limited amount of it. Having a job will teach teens at a young age to use money wisely and in order to get that money,  you have to earn it by being responsible and hardworking. Therefore, fourteens year olds should be able to hold a job at that age in order to help support their family and to learn about the importance of money and how to use it.


Another reason teens should be allowed to work is because many young teens think that you could just work somewhere and get money, but they do not realize that it takes hard work and good collaboration skills. Having a job at a young age gives teens the opportunity to know what to expect jobs to be like as they continue to get older. This gives them the opportunity to know how to collaborate with other people and work as a team. Holding a job at fourteen allows teens to learn that you need to work as a team in order to achieve daily goals and job accomplishments. Working as a team is very important for life in general and to be able to know how to collaborate since a lot of jobs involve group meetings and working with other people. In order for people to be able to work well with others and allow them to know what to expect when they are older at a young age, fourteen year olds should be able to hold a job so they are experienced for jobs later in their life.


Many people say that young people should not have jobs because they are going to work the rest of their lives so why start early. People also say that jobs should not allow fourteen year olds to work because they are not responsible enough or experienced. Many parents tell their kids that they can start working when they can drive themselves places, otherwise, they have to wait. Although being able to drive to work is very helpful, some teens choose not to drive and getting a license also depends on how quickly or how slowly you take the knowledge test and the driving test. It is logical for some parents or adults to think that teens should wait to work, but getting the working experience early prepares them better for the skills they will need later in their lives. If teens do not get the experience early, then they will not be as experienced as others when they are older. This could result in jobs looking past their applications because they do not have the right amount of experience needed for the job.

 

In order for people to have experience to hold long-lasting and well-paying jobs, they need to get the experience early on so they know what to expect and what is expected of them in any type of job. The call to action is lowering the working age from fifteen to fourteen so teens can get the experience they need for later jobs.

 

Getting a job early can also help young teens and their families with financial issues. Being able to have a job early on can help teens understand how to use and spend money rather than spending it on anything they want. Having a job early on in life will have many more pros than cons for their future careers. Therefore, fourteen year olds should hold jobs to help support their families and learn about teamwork and experience.


The author's comments:

I was inspired to write this piece because I believe fourteen year olds should have the right to work in order to help them with many issues. I hope people will understand where I am coming from with this article and try to understand why I wrote it.


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